Based on a variety of social and cultural confinements regarding the depiction of certain parts of the female body in literature, 19th century British novelists had to concentrate on those bodily attributes of women which were considered proper and decent to be displayed in writing. Answering the social rules prohibiting the public exhibition of female passions and feelings, such as sexual arousal, love or wrath, authors turned to methods of substituting the direct reference to those very emotions, thereby employing the parts of the female body they could with a clear conscience depict in their interpretations. This method of illustrating the female body in connection with women’s emotional state is going to be discussed on the basis of Jane Austen’s novels Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice, Charlotte Brontё’s Jane Eyre and the short novel Daisy Miller by Henry James.
A prominent feature of 19th century literature, used to demonstrate the interdependency of mind and body, is illness. The body suffering from physical as well as mental diseases is frequently instrumentalized by novelists as a messenger delivering information about a person’s emotional condition. Additionally, 19th century authors tend to use illness as a starting point for character and plot changes as well as romantic relationships between men and women, and refer to a character’s sickness as his or her lawful punishment for improper conduct.
One of the most important tools for novelists in revealing their characters’ thoughts and emotions is the female complexion. Frequently subject to blushing or turning pale, the female face functions as an apt communicator of a woman’s mind and heart. A blush can uncover a character’s romantic affections, embarrassment, guilty conscience, excitement or anger, and can be seen as an indicator of a woman’s awareness of incorrect conduct. Paleness often reflects a character’s shock or despair and is attributed to poor health.
Amongst others, these factors, supported by a thorough introduction to the social, cultural and political backgrounds of the three concerned novelists, shall be discussed and interpreted in the course of this thesis.
Inhaltsverzeichnis (Table of Contents)
- Introduction
- Social, cultural and political background.
- A woman's role in 19th century society.
- 19th century society's opinions on courtship and marriage
- Illness in the 19th century.
- Looks in the 19th century novel
- Beauty and its consequences
- The decline of beauty.
- The correlation between looks and character
- The body in illness
- Nervous illnesses - hysteria and hypochondria.
- Illness as the consequence of hysteria and grief.
- Illness - a token of change.
- Change of character
- Change of plot
- Illness as matchmaker
- Illness affecting others.
- Illness as a means of punishing improper behavior
- Fainting.
- Insanity.
- Revealing complexions
- The blush.
- Revealing romantic feelings
- Awareness of (in)correct conduct.
- Embarrassment.
- Guilty conscience.
- Excitement
- Anger
- Blanching.
- Psychological reasons for blanching and paleness.
- Paleness as a sign of physical illness.
- The body in motion
- Demonstrations of the body.
- Moving (un)gracefully.
- Movement reflecting inner restlessness.
- 'Moving together'
- Proofs of sentiment
- Caresses, kisses and tears.
- Looks
- Expressive looks
- Inquisitive looks.
- Inability and unwillingness to look.
- Smiles.
- Handshakes
- Varieties of the voice.
- The voice as a means of proving a character's emotional state
- The voice as a sign of power(lessness).
- The interrelation between voice and personality.
- The importance of the voice for the blind Mr. Rochester.
- Tokens of affection.
Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte (Objectives and Key Themes)
This thesis aims to analyze the depiction of the female body in 19th century British novels, focusing on how authors use bodily attributes to convey character emotions and personality traits within the constraints of societal norms.
- The impact of social, cultural, and political context on the depiction of the female body in literature.
- The use of physical appearance, including beauty, plainness, and specific features, to reflect a character's personality and emotional state.
- The role of illness, particularly hysteria and hypochondria, as a tool to convey a character's emotional condition and drive plot development.
- The significance of facial expressions, particularly blushing and paleness, in revealing a character's emotions and thoughts.
- The portrayal of the female body in motion, exploring how movement can reflect a character's health, sexuality, and inner restlessness.
Zusammenfassung der Kapitel (Chapter Summaries)
The introduction provides an overview of the thesis's objectives and methodology, exploring how 19th century novelists navigated social restrictions on depicting female emotions and passions in their works. It introduces key themes and the novels to be analyzed: Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice, Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre, and Henry James's Daisy Miller.
The first chapter delves into the social, cultural, and political context of 19th century England, examining societal norms regarding women's roles, courtship, marriage, and illness. This chapter sets the stage for understanding the constraints and expectations surrounding female behavior and representation in literature.
Chapter two explores the significance of beauty and appearance in 19th century novels. It investigates how physical attributes are used to reflect character traits and emotional states, analyzing the contrasting depictions of beauty and plainness, and their impact on a character's social standing and personal experiences.
Chapter three examines the role of illness in 19th century literature. It investigates how illness, particularly nervous ailments such as hysteria and hypochondria, serves as a vehicle for revealing a character's emotional condition, driving plot development, and shaping romantic relationships. The chapter also explores the use of illness as a form of punishment for inappropriate behavior.
Chapter four focuses on the female complexion as a means of revealing a character's thoughts and emotions. It analyzes the significance of blushing and paleness, exploring how these changes in complexion convey romantic affections, embarrassment, guilty conscience, excitement, anger, and other emotional states.
Chapter five explores the depiction of the female body in motion, examining how movement can express a woman's health, sexuality, and inner restlessness. It analyzes how dancing, a form of controlled physical contact between men and women, is utilized by authors to represent the interplay between male and female bodies in the context of societal norms.
Chapter six investigates further proofs of sentiment expressed through the female body, including caresses, kisses, tears, looks, and facial expressions. It examines the role of the voice in conveying a character's personality and emotional state, exploring how vocal inflection can reflect a character's place in a power relationship.
Schlüsselwörter (Keywords)
The primary keywords and focus topics of this thesis include the female body, 19th century British literature, social and cultural constraints, character representation, emotional expression, beauty, illness, hysteria, hypochondria, facial expressions, blushing, paleness, movement, gesture, voice, and the novels of Jane Austen, Charlotte Brontë, and Henry James.
- Citar trabajo
- Dagmar Hecher (Autor), 2007, The narrative construction of the female body in the British novel of the 19th century, Múnich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/71722
